Come Follow Me in my family

3 Nephi 12-16

I am the Law and the Light

September 21-27

Scripture: 3 Nephi 13: 22

Activity Idea: Secret Helper

In 3 Nephi 13 Jesus teaches about doing alms. According to dictionary.com Alms is defined as food, money, or other donations given to the poor and needy. Anything given as charity. Christ says ” ye shall do alms do not sound a trumpet before you…that they may have glory of men.” but that “thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father who seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly.” (3 Nephi 11: 2-4)

Christ goes on to tell us the things that we should do in secret and not to get the praise or reward of man :

alms
prayer
fasting

With a promise that “thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly”

I’d like to teach this principle to my kids by putting the name of each family member in a hat and drawing names of a person to serve in secret for the week. I’m going to invite them to perform at least one act of service for their person each day for the week.

At the end of the week talk about how we felt doing good things that we don’t get recognized for.

Activity Idea #2: Go Fish

3 Nephi 14: 7-8 says: “Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.”

Ask and it shall be given unto you…makes me think of the game Go Fish. You ask for something, and if they have it, they give it to you!

You don’t need special cards to play. You can just use a 52 card deck.

Shuffle cards and deal each player 5 cards (7 if you are playing a 2-player game.) Place remaining cards face down in the middle of players.
On your turn you pick a card from your hand and ask another player if they have that specific card ( i.e. “mom, do you have any 2’s?”) Player repeats this until he/she has to “Go Fish.”
If the player has any of those cards they are given to the player who asked for them (see…just like 3 Nephi 14:7-8)
If the player does not have any they respond by saying “Go Fish.” And the player then draws from the top of the draw pile.
As soon as you collect 4 of the same cards, you place them face up in front of you.
Player with the most matches, wins.

I’m excited to talk about how God has things that He is wanting to give us, we just have to ask. I’m also going to talk about how sometimes even though we ask, it may not be God’s will (it just isn’t in the cards at the time.) And that part of prayer is aligning our will with God’s.

Activity Idea from the Church: Jesus’s Sheep

Sing “He Sent His Son” (Children’s Songbook, 34–35).
Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and we are His sheep. He said that He loved the Nephites, just like He loved the people in Jerusalem (see 3 Nephi 15:21). No matter where you live, Jesus knows and loves you. He is your Shepherd too!
Now play a game about sheep! Use cotton balls as pretend sheep and scatter them around a table. Place a picture of Jesus in the middle. Use straws to blow the sheep toward Jesus so they can all be gathered close to Him!

3 Nephi 8-11

Arise and Come Forth Unto Me

September 14-20

Scripture: 3 Nephi 11: 11, 14

Activity Idea: Feeling a Nail Mark in Play Doh

In 3 Nephi 11: 14 Christ invites ALL to come and feel for themselves the prints of the nails in his hands, feet, and side.

Christ invited all to come and see and feel. He suffered for all. He wants us to get to know him.

Get a nail and some play doh. Maybe form a hand and/or a foot and put the nail in the play doh and feel the imprint that it made. How does it make you feel about what Christ has done for you?

Activity Idea from the Church: Puzzle in the Dark

Sing “Teach Me to Walk in the Light” (Children’s Songbook, 177).
When Jesus visited the Nephites, He testified that He is “the light and the life of the world” (3 Nephi 9:18).
Turn off the lights and try to put together a puzzle in the dark. Then try again with the lights on. How did the light help you? How does Jesus help us?

Helaman 13-16

Glad Tidings of Great Joy

August 31-September 6

Scripture: Helaman 13:7

Activity Idea: Sock Dodge Ball

•fold socks (if necessary)
• play Dodge Ball
• last person not hit becomes Samuel
• “Samuel” reads Helaman 13:5
• read Helaman 16:2
• repeat (if desireed)

Activity Idea from the Church: Prophet on the Wall

For Helaman 13–16
Sing “Samuel Tells of Baby Jesus” (Children’s Songbook, 36).The prophet Samuel stood on a city wall and told everyone that Jesus would be born soon. People tried to hurt Samuel with stones and arrows, but he was protected. (See Helaman 13:2–4, 16:1–2.) Act out the story! Have someone stand on a chair and pretend to be Samuel. Everyone else could pretend to throw stones or shoot arrows. How would you feel to see a prophet protected by the Lord?

Lazy Ironman

September 2020

What it is:

It is where you have a month to complete a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike, and 26.2 run instead of in a day.

Can’t swim? No problem…just get the miles in another way
Don’t want to run? …walk
Don’t have a bike? Spin at the gym, row, or walk/run

YOU DON’T HAVE TO PERFORM EACH SPECIFIC SPORT TO POST QUALIFYING TIMES/MILES!
Check out these great alternate activities—and add some of your own!
1-hour water walking/jogging = 3 miles run/walk/swim; 5 miles bike
1-hour aerobics class (i.e., kickboxing, boot camp, Zumba) = 5 miles run/walk/swim; 7 miles bike
1-hour treadmill/elliptical = 5 miles run/walk/bike/swim (or mileage counter on machine)
1-hour spin cycle class = 20 miles bike

Why:

For FUN!

I like to try or do something new every year for my birthday and I heard about this and knew that the it would be perfect for my ‘try a new thing’ this year. So, who wants to join me?!?

When:

We can cheer each other on all month long in SEPTEMBER. We will start September 1st and end the 31st.

How:

I made a PDF downloadable tracker that you can print off.

CLICK BELOW for the Free PDF of the Lazy Ironman Tracker

lazy-ironman-tracker Download

My kids also want to participate so I made a tracker for an Olympic Triathlon so it is more doable for kids (and other who don’t want to commit to so many miles.)

CLICK BELOW for the Free PDF of the Lazy Triathlon Tracker

lazy-triathalon Download

For those who missed the September challenge and want to participate in October here is an October tracking sheet, enjoy!

October-Ironman Download

T-shirts:

One friend suggested T-shirts. I’d be willing to make some if you pay for the cost of your own shirt. If you are interested in a shirt, let me know in the comments, email, or text me BY SEPTEMBER 1st.

Here is the design:

I plan on printing on athletic t-shirts using these colors.

Follow me on @withstrengthandlove and tag me in your journey!

Helaman 7-12

Remember the Lord

August 24-30

Scripture: Helaman 10:2

When was the last time you PONDERED the things that the Lord is trying to teach you? What is the Lord trying to teach you now? What does the Lord want you to know? What does the Lord want you to do? Who does the Lord want you to serve? What does the Lord want you to improve upon? How does the Lord feel about you?

Take some time. On your drive. Folding the laundry. Doing the dishes. In the morning or in the night. Find some and PONDER. God speaks to man. That means He can speak to you.

Activity Idea: Object Lesson on Sealing with Rice Krispy Treats

Helaman 10: 7 (4-11) Nephi is given the sealing power.

If you were sealed in the temple get out some pictures and go through them as a family. Tell them about the day.

August 21st is our anniversary and I’ve been pondering a lot on that day. I’m so grateful for the sealing power that has united me to my sweet husband and my children. What a beautiful and peaceful day! My grandpa had taught me that the most important part of a wedding was free and planned and that all that mattered was being there with the right person in the temple. It made everything else just seem like icing on the cake. A fun celebration of the union that took place in the temple. Where Steve and I were SEALED together thanks to the priesthood power being restored to the earth. I’m so grateful for that.

Talk about the sealing power with your family.

“Latter-day Saints believe that God has restored to the earth the power given to the ancient Apostle Peter to bind, or seal, on earth and in heaven. This sealing power is exercised in temples to solemnize marriages and to seal together families across generations.”(https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/history/topics/sealing?lang=eng)

There are so many neat resources on churchofjesuschrist.org.

When I think of sealing I think about how we make a covenant with our spouse and with God and that we all can come closer together as we are sealed.

To talk about how the sealing ordinance binds us together I thought of making Rice Krispies.

Ingredients:

6 Tbsp unsalted butter (Wife….or Husband)
16 oz bag marshmallows (Sealing through God’s power)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (love)
6 cups rice krispies cereal (Husband….or Wife)

I’d like to think of the butter as the wife, the rice krispies as the husband, and the marshmallows as Heavenly Father and the sealing power, vanilla is just for sweetness and love.

Through the sealing power we are stuck together making something awesome.

Instructions for making the treats:

Melt butter over medium heat in a saucepan (or in the microwave). Once melted, add the marshmallows. Reduce heat to low and continue stirring until completely melted.
Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
Add the cereal
Pour into the prepared baking dish. Press GENTLY with your fingertips just until completely spread out (the harder you pack them in, the harder they are to eat).
Allow to set, about 1 hour. Cut and enjoy!

Or make them your own…with Coco Puffs, or another cereal!

Activity Idea #2: Simon Says (If he say ____, behold it is done)

In Helaman 12: 17 (9-21)

Repeated over and over in these verses it reminds us of the power of God and His word. “If he say…behold it is done.”

How many times can you find this repeated in this chapter?

A fun way to reinforce this would be a fun game of Simon Says.

Activity Idea from the Church: Memory Quest

Sing “Follow the Prophet” (Children’s Songbook, 110–11).
Sometimes the Nephites forgot to “remember the Lord” and obey His commandments (see Helaman 12:5). How does remembering Jesus help you do what’s right?
Now play a game about remembering! Put 10 objects in a pile. Have one person look at the pile and try to remember all the objects and then leave the room. Have several people take away one object from the pile. When the person comes back, they guess what’s missing.

Helaman 1-6

The Rock of our Redeemer

August 17-23

Scripture: Helaman 5:12

I’ve talked to several people recently and was reminded yet again how difficult this life can be. There are so many trails that we experience daily, they come from different angles and from different sources. One person in particular said: “Everyone told me [it] would be hard, but I didn’t think it would be this hard.”

I’ve had my own set of struggles (and blessings) as of late and I realize where my strength comes from. My days where I focus on my Savior and His teaching my burdens are infinity lighter. Satan can’t tempt me as much and I feel peace in the trails.

I think of the hymn: How Firm a Foundation

Activity Idea: Rock Hunt

Directions for the activity ROCK HUNT:

• Find/buy (from dollar store) 8 rocks

• Paint/write/print a letter of the word: REMEMBER on each rock

• Hide the rocks around your home or outside

•Have family members search for the rocks

• Once all of the rocks are found try and figure out what it spells.

• Read Helaman 5:12 and talk about how we can build our foundation on Jesus Christ

Activity Idea from the Church: Blow That House Down

Sing “The Wise Man and the Foolish Man” (Children’s Songbook, 281).
The prophet Helaman taught that we need to build our foundation on Jesus Christ. That way when the storms of life come, we can stand strong. (See Helaman 5:12.)
Now build two different kinds of houses, one out of paper or cards and the other with building blocks.
Next blow on both houses as hard as you can. Do both houses stand strong against the wind? How does building your life on Jesus Christ make you strong?

Alma 53-63

Preserved by His Marvelous Power

August 10-16

Scripture: Alma 53: 20-21

And they were all young men, and they were exceedingly valiant for courage, and also for strength and activity; but behold, this was not all—they were men who were true at all times in whatsoever thing they were entrusted.

Yea, they were men of truth and soberness, for they had been taught to keep the commandments of God and to walk uprightly before him.

Activity Idea: Marbles and Clothes Pins Army

Who doesn’t love the 2,000 sons of Helaman?!?! Moroni “never had [he] seen so great courage, nay, not amongst all the Nephites.” (Alma 56:45)

In Alma 56:56 we learn that after fighting in battle they discovered: “But behold, to my great joy, there had ^anot one soul of them fallen to the earth; yea, and they had fought as if with the ^bstrength of God; yea, never were men known to have fought with such miraculous strength; and with such mighty power did they fall upon the Lamanites, that they did frighten them; and for this cause did the Lamanites deliver themselves up as prisoners of war.”

Not one of them had fallen!

In Alma 57:25 we learn again that the 2,000 young men had been spared again: “And it came to pass that there were two hundred, out of my two thousand and sixty, who had fainted because of the loss of blood; nevertheless, according to the goodness of God, and to our great astonishment, and also the joy of our whole army, there was ^anot one soul of them who did perish; yea, and neither was there one soul among them who had not received many wounds.”

None had died, but all were wounded.

Alma 57:26 “their preservation was astonishing…and we do justly ascribe it to the miraculous power of God, because of their exceeding faith”

Because of their faith they were spared. You can set up some army men, some clothes pins, or some action figures.

Get some marbles or marshmallows and try and knock some men down. Talk about how the Lord preserved the army because of their faith, even if they were hit.

Activity Idea: Other Point of View

I really love the correspondence between Moroni and Pahoran in Alma 60-61. Moroni went all out angry because of the lack of aid that he was receiving and Pahoran could have reacted so differently than he did. He could have become defensive and argumentative, but he didn’t he understood Moroni’s perspective and then added his own. Which totally changed how Moroni viewed his situation.

How often in life does that happen to us? Where we think we know what is going on in another’s life? Why they are purposely making our life so miserable, when in reality something else is really in play.

Take some time to role play your reactions to these situations:

Someone is late to a dinner appointment that they have known about all week
Your friend didn’t respond back after calling/texting.
Your sister didn’t clean up her side of the room.
Your brother keeps on bothering you again and again, after you asked him to leave you alone.
come up with your own…

Activity Idea: Tag

In Alma 62:31 it says: “And it came to pass that when the Lamanites saw that Moroni was coming against them, they were again frightened and fled before the army of Moroni.”

For these war chapters I find it interesting that they were so impressed by the Nephite army led my Moroni that they ran and “fled” from before them.

Choose a family member to represent Moroni and the other family members will represent members of the Lamanite army. Everyone needs to try and run away from “Moroni” before they get tagged and sent into prison (a designated area). Last one sent to prison is Moroni next round.

Activity Idea from the Church: Stripling Warrior Challenge

Sing “We’ll Bring the World His Truth” (Children’s Songbook, 172–73).
Learn about the army of Helaman! You can read the story in Alma 56–57, or on page FJ4.
Now use page 8 (in the Friend) to do a stripling-warrior challenge! What other challenges can you come up with?

Alma 43-52

Stand Fast in the Faith of Christ

August 3-9

Scripture: Alma 48:17-19

17 Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto ^aMoroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the ^bdevil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.

18 Behold, he was a man like unto ^aAmmon, the son of Mosiah, yea, and even the other sons of Mosiah, yea, and also Alma and his sons, for they were all men of God.

19 Now behold, Helaman and his brethren were no less ^aserviceable unto the people than was Moroni; for they did preach the word of God, and they did baptize unto repentance all men whosoever would hearken unto their words.

Growing up I always wanted to marry a Moroni. He was strong, mighty, a man of perfect understanding, his soul found joy in liberty, he was thankful to God and had always been a leader from a very young age. Who doesn’t want that?

What I overlooked for years was the next verse. We get so caught up in Moroni and how perfect he seems that we don’t see who is mentioned in the next verse who were all men of God, and “no less serviceable.”

Who are these men?

Spoiler… they were once sinners. Not perfect!

The sons of Mosiah went around trying to destroy the church of God. They were the ‘bad boys’ growing up. But guess what?!?!? God doesn’t care. They repented. They turned their lives around and became powerful forces for good in the world.

We don’t need to look for “perfect” men or women. We need to look for men and women of God who have used the atonement of Jesus Christ in their lives and have a personal relationship with Him as they serve others.

It also teaches me that not everyone came to earth to fulfill the same roles. The leader of the army is just as important as a missionary. Less comparison with others leads to more joy.

Activity Idea: Make Your Own Title of Liberty

Alma 46:12-15, 21: Moroni took off his coat and he wrote on it: “In memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children” and he put it on a pole.

All that were true believers of Christ took upon them “gladly” the name of Christ.

Then they took their coats and made a covenant to take upon themselves the name of Christ (v.21)

We can do likewise with our families. We can make and hoist up our own titles of liberties, voicing that we are willing to take upon ourselves the name of Christ.

You can use an old t-shirt and a sharpie, or a piece of paper.

You can copy the words that Moroni put on his title of liberty or you can come up with your own as a family.

This way you can talk about how we can take upon ourselves the name of Christ and what that means to us.

Activity Idea #2: Build up a fortification to protect your city with Lego. Try and tear it down by throwing marshmallows.

Alma 49: 13-14: Moroni fortified every city. As you are building talk about how we can build ourselves to be strong and fortify ourselves against the attacks of Satan. What are our weak areas that can “become strong” (v.14.)

Activity Idea from the Church: Fly Your Flag

Sing “Home Can Be a Heaven on Earth” (Hymns, no. 298).
Captain Moroni made a flag out of his coat to remind his army that they were fighting for their families, their faith, and their freedom (see Alma 46:12). This flag was called the title of liberty.
Make your own flag! On a piece of paper, draw pictures of what’s important to you and your family. Hang it up as a reminder.

Alma 39-42

The Great Plan of Happiness

July 27-August 2

Scripture: Alma 41: 10

Activity Idea: The no smile game.

I love the reminder in Alma 41:10 that “wickedness never was happiness.”

We are going to make a list of things that DO bring happiness: the gospel of Jesus Christ, serving, our family, friends, Jesus, church, reading, the scriptures, etc.

Then we are going to play a family favorite game: it is called the “no smile” game. The rules are simple. If you smile you are out. We play one person at a time and the winner keeps playing other family members until they are out. You can make noises, make faces, tell jokes, anything you can think of to get the other person to smile…as long as you don’t smile yourself first!

Have fun smiling and laughing together as a family.

Here is a clip from 4 years ago while playing with my then 2 year old. Try not to smile!

Activity Idea #2: Talk about the law of Chastity.

I love talking about the law of Chastity with my family. It is all about families. This week will be the perfect time to bring it up or revisit it. Alma spoke with his son, Corianton, about it and we can too!

Here is a link to a previous post were I talked about it.

https://wordpress.com/block-editor/post/comefollowmeinmy.family.blog/324

Activity Idea from the Church: Salt and Pepper Experiment

Sing “Repentance” (Children’s Songbook, 98).
The prophet Alma had a son who made bad choices. Alma taught him to “repent and forsake [his] sins” (Alma 39:9). That means telling Heavenly Father you’re sorry, asking for forgiveness, and doing your best to not make the bad choice again.
Do the salt and pepper activity on page 34 to teach your family about repentance. How is repentance like the spoon in the experiment?

Alma 36-38

Look to God and Live

July 20-26

Scripture: Alma 36: 17 & 20

And it came to pass that as I was thus ^aracked with torment, while I was ^bharrowed up by the ^cmemory of my many sins, behold, I ^dremembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.

And oh, what ^ajoy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain!

Activity Idea: Memory: Remember What Dad Said

I love in the recounting his (Alma) story to his son Helaman, that the changing point hinged on REMEMBERING what his father had taught him about Jesus Christ. (Alma 36: 17-21.)

For this activity we are going to have dad say several words and then ask the kids to remember a specific word or phrase.

Dad says: balloon, water, book, church, clouds, dishes, trials, and cell phone.

Then dad asks: what did I say that started with the letter “t” or “something that is in this room.”

Use your own list. Have fun with it.

Another spin on this is to have dad quote a scripture and see how closely they can get to repeating it verbatim.

Younger kids can have fewer words or you can use objects.

Activity Idea from the Church: Small, Small, Tall!

Sing “Once There Was a Snowman” (Children’s Songbook, 249).
Alma taught his son that by “small and simple things are great things brought to pass” (Alma 37:6). That means that the small, good things we do each day can make a big difference.
Now build something big out of something small! What could you use? You can also plan a small act of service your family could do together.